Life After GeauxTeach

The LSU GeauxTeach program produces highly-qualified graduates who are prepared to
teach, pursue graduate studies, go to medical school, or enter the workforce in a
variety of professional disciplines. The possibilities are truly infinite.

Here are two promising GeauxTeach graduates who are using their GT experience to maximize
their career potential.

Willie Talbert has known his entire life that he wanted to be a doctor. He was inspired by the fictitious
Dr. Heathcliff Huxtable, the doting dad and obstetrician portrayed by Bill Cosby,
on the widely popular Cosby Show.

“I initially wanted to do pediatrics, but I was able to shadow a cardiologist at the
Baton Rouge Cardiology Clinic and it changed my perspective. It was a really great
experience,” said Willie.

In 2009, he enrolled at LSU as a biological sciences major and later added a secondary
education minor through the GeauxTeach Program, which gives students an opportunity
to graduate with a BS in math or science and be certified and highly-qualified to
teach in that subject area. All incoming freshmen received an email about GeauxTeach,
but it was the program’s introductory class that persuaded Talbert to enroll.

“I initially enrolled in GeauxTeach thinking that it would look great on my medical
school application,” said Willie. “It was a boost because they don’t see folks who
are qualified to teach and go into medicine, but it was the teaching that helped me
to be successful in my science course work.”

Willie, a fall 2013 graduate, is enjoying life as an LSU alum.

“Life after graduation is refreshing,” said Willie. “It is nice to not have to juggle
studying and working, but I miss it and will miss it more as time goes on.”

After graduation, he realized that he had approximately eight months before the start
of medical school. He will be attending the LSU School of Medicine in New Orleans
in August. This free time was a great opportunity to put his GeauxTeach experience
to good use.

Denham Springs High School, Willie’s alma mater, was looking for an experienced biology
and chemistry teacher and his GeauxTeach preparation equipped him to step in.

“With GeauxTeach, you can have a job immediately after graduation,” said Talbert.
“Schools are always looking for good math and science teachers.”

“I felt a lot more comfortable teaching with a degree in biological sciences. I know
the content and I received tons of classroom experience. It was an easy transition
to the classroom. I was confident in my teaching skills because I had the experience
to back it up,” adds Willie.

Willie was accepted to the LSU School of Medicine in New Orleans.

Heather Bass, a May 2012 GeauxTeach graduate in mathematics, garnered the attention of the Bill
& Melinda Gates Foundation, for incorporating the latest mathematics teaching tools
in her Port Allen High School classroom.

Heather was part of the Mathematics Design Collaborative (MDC), a project funded by
the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, that groups curriculum designers, assessment
developers, professional learning specialists, and school districts across the nation
in an effort to develop high-quality instructional tools and professional support
services for math teachers.

MDC trains math instructors in the use of formative assessments, which are formal
and informal assessment procedures used to adjust teaching and learning activities,
and improve student achievement. Bass was exposed to formative assessments while
working towards a mathematics degree in the LSU GeauxTeach (GT) program. GT allows
math and science teachers to pursue a bachelors of science all while earning a teacher’s
certification.

“Formative assessment is an effective way to determine a student’s level of understanding,
so that the teacher can meet the student’s immediate learning needs,” said Bass, who
was exposed to formative assessment techniques early in her academic career as a GeauxTeach
student.“From my first GeauxTeach class, I was able to apply the techniques in real classroom
situations, so I was very confident and prepared as I entered the classroom as a full-time
math instructor. ”

Heather's experience using formative assessments led MDC to videotape her co-teaching
a math assessment project on time graphs with fellow Port Allen High instructor Terry
Hobbins. The MDC educational video will be used to teach math instructors how to
incorporate formative assessments in their classrooms.